There's also a pretty good correlation between that and the amount of HFCS in the average person's diet. I'm not saying the HFCS is the work of the devil and is driving the holy spirit out of our bodies, I'm just asking questions.

shtychkn:Omahawg: atheism, open racism, acceptance of the gheys, cats, free pornography, and hp lovecraft have all seem to have had a field day since the internet really hit the ground running in the mid-90s

Angela Lansbury's Merkin:There's also a pretty good correlation between that and the amount of HFCS in the average person's diet. I'm not saying the HFCS is the work of the devil and is driving the holy spirit out of our bodies, I'm just asking questions.

I would like to subscribe to your newsletter. Prior to the major soft drink companies using HFCS in their products the use of crack and meth were far lower than they are now. Inquiring minds want to know

As a gen-x'er I remember back in the 80's and early 90's when I had to think twice before admitting to someone I was an atheist. usually there was a gasp of disbelief but sometimes people would get visibly upset.

Free access to open debate and information exposes people to varying viewpoints and gives them an enhanced ability to deal with large volumes of information (eventually). This isn't a new problem for religion, the printing press put more than its share of nails in the coffin of magical thinking too. By the late 1700s/early 1800s religions as actual moral guiding forces were verging on extinct, it was only the Red Scare in the 1950s that brought it back at all (temporarily, apparently, but well enough that they're back to their usual sociological-malignant-cancer status).

Sure, it's not an antidote for racism, but racism is a general attitude of dislike for something, it's not really possible to 'argue that away' in the short term. Religions have doctrine, though, which can be directly met and countered by logic and argument-- any situation where you actually let people argue, study, and think things over poisons it pretty fast.

doosh:As a gen-x'er I remember back in the 80's and early 90's when I had to think twice before admitting to someone I was an atheist. usually there was a gasp of disbelief but sometimes people would get visibly upset.

doosh:As a gen-x'er I remember back in the 80's and early 90's when I had to think twice before admitting to someone I was an atheist. usually there was a gasp of disbelief but sometimes people would get visibly upset.

I hear you. I'm not really a atheist, I guess. I don't believe it(if anything) went down like any of the holy books say. I think some of them would kill themselves if they ever realized how foolish they act. Thanks to their permanent suspension of disbelief on the subject, most are safe.

neongoats:MFAWG: neongoats: MFAWG: vonster: MFAWG: I think there is a certain type of Christianity that's being practiced in the US that has nothing to do with Christianity and may actually end up destroying it.

And that would actually be a bad thing.

I think in a limited way you may be right.

There was a time (in my lifetime, in fact) when Christians were a real force for positive social change. Them days seem to be in the past.

How old ARE you? Because I'm closing in on 40 and that's literally never been the case in my lifetime. Also, the troops have never once defended my freedoms.(except maybe the coast guard and NORAD)

I'm 50, and I don't think you were paying enough attention to the 70s.

Well I was ages 0 through 3 in the 70s, So yeah.

And that's kind of my point. In the 60s and 70s you had mainstream Christians very involved in civil rights, nuclear proliferation, and economic issues in the US. And that was really true going back 100 years at least.

I'm an Atheist but I think people are jumping the gun in equating no religious affiliation with atheism. I don't know any other Atheists but I do know people who believe there is a God but claim not to believe in any religion, those people still practice some religious rituals (baptism, wedding) for cultural reasons.

Nowadays, it seems you are either an agnostic (50% of the time), atheistic (10% of the time), or a religious fanatic (20% of the time). The other 20% of the time you can't be bothered to give an answer.

MFAWG:And that's kind of my point. In the 60s and 70s you had mainstream Christians very involved in civil rights, nuclear proliferation, and economic issues in the US. And that was really true going back 100 years at least.

You've also had mainstream Christians opposing every change.

The word "Christian" tells you nothing without a long string of modifiers and brand affiliations. There are literally thousands of different belief sets that all call themselves "Christian."

talkertopc:I'm an Atheist but I think people are jumping the gun in equating no religious affiliation with atheism. I don't know any other Atheists but I do know people who believe there is a God but claim not to believe in any religion, those people still practice some religious rituals (baptism, wedding) for cultural reasons.

talkertopc:I'm an Atheist but I think people are jumping the gun in equating no religious affiliation with atheism. I don't know any other Atheists but I do know people who believe there is a God but claim not to believe in any religion, those people still practice some religious rituals (baptism, wedding) for cultural reasons.

I'm an agnostic atheist and Christmas is still my favorite holiday, for the "getting together with friends and family" aspect along with trying to surprise someone with a cool gift. Also, shopping is easy when you're a big guy in a leather jacket.

Lenny_da_Hog:MFAWG: And that's kind of my point. In the 60s and 70s you had mainstream Christians very involved in civil rights, nuclear proliferation, and economic issues in the US. And that was really true going back 100 years at least.

You've also had mainstream Christians opposing every change.

The word "Christian" tells you nothing without a long string of modifiers and brand affiliations. There are literally thousands of different belief sets that all call themselves "Christian."

True enough, and I think what we have isa very loud minority that really make the majority look bad. The problem is that the majority don't seem willing or even able to do anything about it.

Boojum2k:talkertopc: I'm an Atheist but I think people are jumping the gun in equating no religious affiliation with atheism. I don't know any other Atheists but I do know people who believe there is a God but claim not to believe in any religion, those people still practice some religious rituals (baptism, wedding) for cultural reasons.

I'm an agnostic atheist and Christmas is still my favorite holiday, for the "getting together with friends and family" aspect along with trying to surprise someone with a cool gift. Also, shopping is easy when you're a big guy in a leather jacket.

/or Amazon

You cannot be an agnostic atheist. You are either an Agnostic or an Atheist.

CruJones:shtychkn: Omahawg: atheism, open racism, acceptance of the gheys, cats, free pornography, and hp lovecraft have all seem to have had a field day since the internet really hit the ground running in the mid-90s

anuran:vonster: As always, the militants atheists are here to ugly up/hate up the conversation.

Bye

As opposed to the "really militant because we actually pick up guns and shoot people" gospel grinders

That's why I like that cartoon that always gets posted. Any other time the word militant gets used it refers to seriously dangerous people. With atheists it's used for, "people who are condescending on the internet"